Back-side contact formation

ABSTRACT

In one embodiment, a semiconductor is provided comprising a substrate and a plurality of wiring layers and dielectric layers formed on the substrate, the wiring layers implementing a circuit. The dielectric layers separate adjacent ones of the plurality of wiring layers. A first passivation layer is formed on the plurality of wiring layers. A first contact pad is formed in the passivation layer and electrically coupled to the circuit. A wire is formed on the passivation layer and connected to the contact pad. A through silicon via (TSV) is formed through the substrate, the plurality of wiring and dielectric layers, and the passivation layer. The TSV is electrically connected to the wire formed on the passivation layer. The TSV is electrically isolated from the wiring layers except for the connection provided by the metal wire formed on the passivation layer.

One of the major trends in the semiconductor packaging industry is touse surface-mount technology (SMT) as a replacement for conventionalplated-through-hole (PTH) technology. SMT offers several distinctadvantages over PTH technology, such as greater packaging density,higher lead counts with shorter interconnection lengths and easierautomation. Since SMT requires electronic devices and components to bemountable on the surface of a printed circuit board (PCB) or substrate,the materials and structure of traditional through-hole componentsincluding capacitors, resistors, and inductors have to be redesigned tomeet the modern-day demand for short, thin, light, and small electronicdevices. Examples of semiconductor devices accomplishing these objectsinclude quad-flat, non-leaded packages. Quad-flat, non-leaded packageshave a package structure in which space-consuming outer leads protrudinglaterally out of a package are eliminated. Instead, external electrodepads, which are to eventually be electrically connected to a circuitboard, are provided on the bottom surface of the quad-flat, non-leadedpackage. The bottom surface of the package that connects to the circuitboard may be referred to as the back-side of the package as used herein.

Depending on the packaging and stacking of semiconductor dice for anapplication, it may be more desirable to implement a die with eitherfront-side or back-side contacts. Ultimately, it may be necessary toimplement different die layouts with different contacts for severalapplications. However, fabricating different die layouts for differentpackages and/or applications increases production complexity and costs.

One or more embodiments may address one or more of the above issues.

In one embodiment, a semiconductor is provided comprising a substrateand a plurality of wiring layers and dielectric layers formed on thesubstrate, the wiring layers implementing a circuit. The dielectriclayers separate adjacent ones of the plurality of wiring layers. A firstpassivation layer is formed on the plurality of wiring layers. A firstcontact pad is formed in the passivation layer and electrically coupledto the circuit. A wire is formed on the passivation layer and connectedto the contact pad. A through silicon via (TSV) is formed through thesubstrate, the plurality of wiring and dielectric layers, and thepassivation layer. The TSV is electrically connected to the wire formedon the passivation layer. The TSV is electrically isolated from thewiring layers except for the connection provided by the metal wireformed on the passivation layer.

In another embodiment, a method of forming a plurality of semiconductorsis provided. A plurality of identical semiconductor dice is formed. Eachdie includes a substrate and a plurality of wiring layers and dielectriclayers. The dielectric layers separate adjacent ones of the wiringlayers and the wiring layers implement a circuit. A passivation layer isformed on the plurality of wiring layers. A front-side contact pad isformed in the passivation layer and electrically coupled to the circuit.A via stack is formed through the plurality of wiring and dielectriclayers, the via stack is electrically isolated from the circuitimplemented by the wiring layers. For each of a first subset of theplurality of identical semiconductor dice including at least one die,the circuit is left electrically isolated from the via stack. For eachof a second subset of the plurality of identical semiconductor dice, thesecond subset is mutually exclusive from the first subset and includesat least one die, a back-side contact is formed. The back-side contactis formed by forming a first via through the passivation layer andelectrically coupled to the via stack, forming a wire on the passivationlayer to electrically couple the front-side contact pad to the firstvia, and forming a second via extending from a back-side of thesubstrate and through the substrate.

In yet another embodiment, a method of forming a semiconductor with aback-side contact is provided. A semiconductor die including a substrateand a plurality of wiring layers and dielectric layers is formed. Thedielectric layers separate adjacent ones of the wiring layers, and thewiring layers implement a circuit. A passivation layer is formed on theplurality of wiring layers. A front-side contact pad is formed in thepassivation layer and electrically coupled to the circuit. A via stackis formed through the plurality of wiring and dielectric layers. The viastack is electrically isolated from the circuit implemented by thewiring layers. The die is reconfigured to have a back-side contact byperforming the steps including: forming a first via through thepassivation layer. The first via is electrically coupled to the viastack. A wire electrically coupling the front-side contact pad to thefirst via is formed on the passivation layer. A second via electricallycoupled to the via stack is formed. The second via extends from aback-side of the substrate and through the substrate.

The above discussion is not intended to describe each embodiment orevery implementation. Various example embodiments may be more completelyunderstood in consideration of the following detailed description inconnection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a semiconductor reconfigured in post-fabrication processingto have a back-side contact;

FIGS. 2 through 4 illustrate the fabrication of a reconfigurablesemiconductor;

FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate post-fabrication reconfiguration of thereconfigurable semiconductor shown in FIG. 4; and

FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate a second method for formation of a back-sidevia and contact connected to the stacked via.

While the disclosure is amenable to various modifications andalternative forms, examples thereof have been shown by way of example inthe drawings and will be described in detail. It should be understood,however, that the intention is not to limit the disclosure to theparticular embodiments shown and/or described. On the contrary, theintention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternativesfalling within the spirit and scope of the disclosure.

In one or more embodiments, a semiconductor die is provided that may beeasily reconfigured, via post fabrication processes, to implementback-side contacts. Such capability allows a batch of identicalsemiconductor dice to be used for a wider variety of applications. Someof the dice may be used in packages in which front-side contacts areused, and others of the dice may be used in packages in which theback-side contacts are used. Due to this increase versatility andsimplified fabrication, manufacturing costs can be reduced and variouscombinations of different integrated circuit dice can be combined, e.g.,for fast prototyping.

In one embodiment, a die having one or more front-side contacts may bereconfigured to use back-side contacts. FIG. 1 shows a semiconductorreconfigured in post-fabrication processing to have a back-side contact.A plurality of wiring layers 104 and dielectric layers 106 are formed ona substrate layer 102. The dielectric layers 106 separate adjacent onesof the plurality of wiring layers 104. A number of stacked vias andmetal plates together implement a through silicon via (TSV) 112 passingthrough the wiring 104, dielectric 106, and substrate 102 layers. Thewiring layers are patterned to implement a circuit 110 coupled to afront-side contact pad 114 and a portion of the TSV.

Prior to post-fabrication configuration, the die may be used in a numberof applications which use the front-side contact pad. In suchapplications, the TSV 112 remains electrically isolated from the circuit110. To configure the die to have a back-side contact, a wire 122 isformed over the passivation layer 120 to couple the TSV 112 to thefront-side contact. As a result, a path is formed between the circuit110 and the back-side of the die.

FIGS. 2-4 illustrate the fabrication of a reconfigurable semiconductor.FIG. 2 shows a substrate 202 and dielectric isolation layer 204 on whichmetal semiconductor circuits may be formed. FIG. 3 illustrates formationof a plurality of wiring layers 302 and dielectric layers 304 on thesilicon substrate and dielectric shown in FIG. 2. The dielectric layers304 separate adjacent ones of the plurality of wiring layers 310. Thewiring layers are patterned to implement at least one circuit 310 and atleast one via stack 312 that are electrically isolated from each other.

The via stack is implemented by forming a metal plate 320 in each of thewiring layers. The metal plates of adjacent wiring layers are verticallyaligned and electrically connected to each other by means of vias 322formed in the dielectric layer that separates the adjacent wiringlayers. The metal plate size within the metal layers can be designedwith respect to metal tiling design rules. The metal plate size withinthe metal layers can be minimized with respect to the required sheetresistance. The size and distribution of metal vias 322 can be designedwith respect to metal tiling design rules and electrical requirements.

FIG. 4 illustrates formation of a passivation layer and front-sidecontact pad in the die shown in FIG. 3. An additional passivation layer402 is formed over the metal wiring layers. The passivation layer 402 isa non-reactive surface film, such as an oxide or a nitride, thatinhibits corrosion of the wiring layers 302. To provide an externalcontact for the circuit, a front-side contact pad 404 is formed in thepassivation layer 402. As described above, some applications may use thefront side contact pad of the die configuration shown in FIG. 4. Inother applications, post-fabrication processes may further configure thedie to implement one or more backside contacts.

FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate post-fabrication configuration of thereconfigurable semiconductor shown in FIG. 4. The die may bereconfigured to implement a TSV, as shown in FIG. 1, that canelectrically couple a front-side contact to a back-side contact pad.

Through silicon vias can be difficult to implement because etching oftenrequires etching through several different materials. Because differentmaterials etch at different rates, side walls of the etched via trenchcan be uneven. As a result, deposition of conductive and/or isolativematerials in the via can be difficult. The uneven shape may alsoadversely affect electrical properties of the via such as inductance andcapacitance. Deposition of conductive material in a TSV is alsodifficult due to higher aspect ratio of height to width in comparison tostandard vias. The formation of a TSV entails deep etching through themajority of a die, forming a dielectric oxide layer along the sides ofthe TSV, and filling or plating of the TSV with a conductive material.However, at high aspect ratios, current methods of via formation maycause oxide or metal plating of the via to form significantly faster atthe top of the via than at the bottom. In addition to non-uniformitycaused by the uneven deposition rates, the rapid growth at the top ofthe TSV may cause voids to become trapped in the TSV. Such variation anddefects may be avoided by implementing the TSV with the via stack 322because the via stack is formed using a number of smaller vias whichhave a smaller aspect ratio.

By configuration the wiring layers to implement the via stack 312 duringfabrication of the circuit, a through silicon via may be implementedpost-fabrication with the formation of a via through the passivationlayer and a via through the substrate.

FIG. 5 illustrates formation of vias on the front and back-sides of thedie shown in FIG. 4 allowing access to the via stack 312. A first via502 is formed in the passivation layer and a second via 504 is formedthrough the silicon substrate 202.

FIG. 6 illustrates filling of the vias 502 and 504 and reconfigurationof the die to connect the circuit 310 to a back-side contact 606. Insome embodiments, an insulative material may be deposited to isolate theTSV from the substrate. After vias 502 and 504 are filled or plated, aback-side contact is formed on the back-side of the die. The back-sidecontact is electrically coupled to via stack 312 through plated via 502.Post fabrication wiring 610 is formed over the passivation layer toelectrically couple the back-side contact 606 to the circuit 310 throughvias 502 and 504, via stack 312, and front-side contact 404. Afterreconfiguration, some embodiments may form a second passivation layer608 on the backside of the substrate 202. A third passivation layer (notshown) may also be formed over the wire 610 and front-side contact 404to prevent corrosion.

It is recognized that the back-side via through the substrate 202 may beformed using a variety of via formation methods. In FIG. 6, vias 502 and504 are illustrated as having a taper angle close to 90 degrees andbeing completedly filled with conductive metal. Alternatively, othervias may be metal plated and/or tapered at other angles. For example,FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate a second method for formation of a back-sidevia and contact connected to the stacked via of FIG. 4. FIG. 7illustrates the formation of a conically shaped tapered via trench insubstrate 202. FIG. 8 illustrates plating of the conically shapedtapered via. Because of the surface area of the conically shaped via,the via 702 may be plated with a thin metal plating 802. A passivationlayer 804 is formed over the via plating 802. A back-side contact pad806 is formed in the passivation layer and is electrically coupled tothe metal plating 802.

Based upon the above discussion and illustrations, those skilled in theart will readily recognize that various modifications and changes may bemade without strictly following the exemplary embodiments andapplications illustrated and described herein. Such modifications do notdepart from the true spirit and scope of the present disclosure,including that set forth in the following claims.

1. A semiconductor comprising a substrate; a plurality of wiring layersand dielectric layers formed on the substrate, the dielectric layersseparating adjacent ones of the plurality of wiring layers, and thewiring layers implementing a circuit; a first passivation layer formedon the plurality of wiring layers; a first contact pad formed in thepassivation layer and electrically coupled to the circuit; a wire formedon the passivation layer and connected to the contact pad; and a throughsilicon via (TSV) formed through the substrate, the plurality of wiringand dielectric layers, and the passivation layer, the TSV electricallyconnected to the wire formed on the passivation layer, and the TSV beingelectrically isolated from the wiring layers except for the connectionprovided by the metal wire formed on the passivation layer.
 2. Thesemiconductor of claim 1, further comprising a second contact pad formedbelow the substrate and electrically coupled to the TSV.
 3. Thesemiconductor of claim 1, wherein the TSV includes: a metal plate formedin each of the plurality of wiring layers; and a respective via througheach dielectric layer separating adjacent ones of the plurality ofwiring layers, each via connecting the metal plates in adjacent ones ofthe plurality of wiring layers.
 4. The semiconductor of claim 3, whereinthe TSV further includes, a via formed through the substrate andelectrically coupled to the metal plate formed in a bottom one of theplurality of wiring layers.
 5. The semiconductor of claim 1, furthercomprising a second passivation layer formed over the metal contact padand over the wire formed on the first passivation layer.
 6. Thesemiconductor of claim 4, wherein the via formed through the substrateand electrically coupled to the metal plate formed in a bottom one ofthe plurality of wiring layers is conical.
 7. The semiconductor of claim1, wherein the TSV formed through the substrate is electrically isolatedfrom the substrate. 8-17. (canceled)